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Etihad-backed Air Berlin says has cash to tide over woes

Abu Dhabi airline is key shareholder in German carrier which has suffered heavy losses

(Getty Images)

By AFP

Wed 14 Jun 2017 03:52 PM

Struggling German airline Air Berlin insisted Wednesday that it has sufficient cash to stay solvent despite suffering heavy losses and a string of flight cancellations.

"Insolvency is not an issue for us. We have sufficient liquidity and a reliable partner, Etihad, which has pledged its support through to October 2018," a spokeswoman from the airline told AFP.

The Berlin-based airline booked losses amounting to 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) for the last two years, and depends on cash infusions from key shareholder Etihad for survival.

It recently applied to the German states of Berlin and North Rhine-Westphalia for a public guarantee.

But the Air Berlin spokeswoman said customers can keep booking Air Berlin flights "without worries".

"We are flying reliably again and have a grip on operational problems," she said.

Acknowledging that complaints have soared over recent months, the spokeswoman said "it could take a while before all the cases are dealt with".

"But Air Berlin will meet all the legitimate demands of its clients," she pledged.

Executives from Germany's second-largest airline presented a massive restructuring plan in late September that included renting 38 aircraft with crew to Lufthansa and slashing 1,200 jobs - or one in seven of its workforce.

Amid its restructuring, it has also been hit by a series of flight cancellations and severe delays, including over the recent Whitsun long weekend.